Antifouling Surface Coatings from Self-Assembled Zwitterionic Aramid Amphiphile Nanoribbons

Zwitterionic surfaces are increasingly explored as antifouling coatings due to their propensity to resist protein, bacterial, and cell adhesion and are typically applied as polymeric systems. Here, the self-assembly of strongly interacting small molecule amphiphiles is reported to produce nanoribbons for antifouling applications. Synthesized amphiphiles spontaneously form micrometers-long nanoribbons with nanometer-scale cross-sections and intrinsically display a dense coating of zwitterionic moieties on their surfaces. Substrates coated with nanoribbons demonstrate concentration-dependent thicknesses and near superhydrophilicity. These surface coatings are then probed for antifouling properties and substantial reductions are demonstrated in protein adsorption, bacterial biofilm formation, and cell adhesion relative to uncoated controls. Harnessing cohesive small molecule self-assembling nanomaterials for surface coatings offers a facile route to effective antifouling surfaces.